From Steve over at The Firearm Blog, Federal is making ammo specifically for M1 and M1A/M14’s.

Looks like it’s intended to be a target/match round. Now if they could just do the same for a hunting round!

The thing is, while a Springfield M1A may be chambered in .308 Win / 7.62x51mm NATO, it can’t use just any .308/7.62×51 ammo. I found a posting at The M14 Firing Line forum that states what Springfield themselves says about ammo for use in an M1A. Note that the following is based upon the forum posting; I haven’t confirmed if it actually is from Springfield. What’s written is basically what’s in there and not from me; anything that’s my comment will be noted. NB: this list is obsolete. Scroll down to the 20 October 2009 update for updated information.

• For best accuracy, 168 grain Federal Match or Black Hills
• Any factory .308 Winchester ammo made to SAAMI spec is usable.
• Any military surplus 7.62x51mm NATO (as long as it’s manufactured to NATO specs) is usable.
  • [Hsoi: All “7.62” is not the same. You want 7.62x51mm NATO, not 7.62x39mm (like you’d fire out of an AK) or 7.62×54 (like you’d fire out of a Mosin-Nagant)]
  • [Hsoi: XM80 is your 7.62x51mm NATO 149 grain FMJ, so it works]
  • [Hsoi: XM118 is your 7.62x51mm NATO 175 grain HP, intended for longer range; it should work]
• Any grain from 147 to 180 is usable.
  • 168 grain is recommended for best accuracy
• Use FMJ, HP, or “ballistic tip” type rounds [Hsoi: i.e. plastic tiped bullets; note that the term “Ballistic Tip” is a registered trademark of Nosler, so it shouldn’t be used as a generic term for “plastic tipped” bullets]
  • Avoid soft points. The lead can shave and wind up down in the action and jam it up.
• You can not use .308 Magnum
  • Hornady Light Magnum can be OK for short-term use, but certainly not a steady diet. The 110 grain may not be enough gases to cycle the action. [Hsoi: Hornady themselves says to not use these rounds in semi-auto and/or gas-operated firearms; IMHO, I wouldn’t use them in my M1A.]
• Avoid steel-cased ammo (not necessarily SAAMI spec)
• Avoid Hornady TAP [Hsoi: not sure why this]
• Avoid Cavim ammo as it’s not very accurate and varies in size
• For hunting
  • Winchester Silver Tip is OK to use [Hsoi: I’m not sure if they differentiate between Winchester Super-X Silvertip and Winchester Supreme Ballistic Silvertip, and/or if it matters. The Silvertip is an aluminum cap whereas the Ballstic Silvertip is a polycarbonate tip. Don’t know if it matters, and it probably doesn’t.]
  • Hornady Ballistic Tip [Hsoi: technically Nosler makes Ballistic Tip, as it’s their registered trademark. Are they meaning A-Max or V-Max? I don’t know, but you get the idea.]
  • Winchester Failsafe [Hsoi: Winchester doesn’t make this any more, replacing with the XP3 line.]
  • 168 grain for deer
  • 175 grain for moose
• Moly coated bullets are OK to use but when you start to use them you must stay with them. You will have to clean the gas port more often. SAI does not recommend. If you do use them, it will gum up fast, and you’ll have to clean often and clean well.
• Tracer and armor piercing ammo is OK, as long as it’s NATO spec.
• Frangible ammo is too light, won’t work.

There’s a few other things in the posting, but it’s a bit redundant. Their terms are a bit informal so it’s difficult to know exactly what’s what, especially regarding hunting ammo. The key thing seems to be that you can NOT use anything with an exposed soft point. The reason is any exposed lead will shave off, get down into the action, and jam things up. I have read of people using exposed soft points in their M1A’s “without any problem” but one round may not a problem make.

Updated 20 Oct 2009: Prompted by this thread at m14tfl.com, I contacted Springfield Armory for further information. For historical purposes I opted to NOT change the above list but instead reprint SAI’s email here.

Springfield Armory: Recommended ammo for our rifles that are chambered for .308

Any commercially produced, new .308 ammunition that meets the following requirements:

• Is a 110 grain to 180 grain bullet
• Is a full metal jacket (FMJ), hollow point (HP or BTHP), or ballistic tip type bullet.
• Do not use soft point (SP) bullets.
• Do not use “light magnum” type ammo.
• We do not recommend the use of any steel case ammo.
• We do not recommend the use of any cast bullets.

You can also use surplus 7.62×51 ammo that meets the following requirements:

• Is clean and from sealed containers.
• is NATO spec. It will have a NATO spec mark on the case head and/or on the packaging that looks like a plus sign inside of a circle.
• Avoid using surplus ammo that is “loose” or “bulk”.
• We do not recommend the use of any steel case ammo.

To get the most in accuracy we recommend:

• Federal Match or Black Hills match 168 or 175 grain.
• Hornady Match / custom 168 grain or Hornady TAP 110 or 168 grain.

I am seeking clarification on a few points and will update this when/if I receive that clarification.

Updated 11 November 2009: I guess my emails to SAI went to /dev/null, so I contacted them again about clarifications. I finally got a response. Here’s a rundown:

• I asked why not soft points
  • The response was as I had thought, that lead can shave and gum up the action.
• I asked why not surplus, or ammo that is “loose” or “bulk”
  • The response is just because it could be of questionable status. So my personal feeling is, if you know the story behind the loose or bulk or surplus ammo, go ahead and use it (hey, it’s your gun… if you blow it up it’s your fault). If you have any doubts about the ammo, don’t use it.
• I asked why not “light magnum” (thinking it may not cycle the action), and also asked why not steel case (thinking it may not be SAAMI spec, it may be hard on the extractor).
  • The response was “to be perfectly frank, we don’t recommend those types of ammo because they don’t work well in our M1A’s.”
• I asked why not cast bullets, but didn’t get a specific response to that question. My guess is it’s the same as why not soft points.

So there you go. Hopefully this puts things to rest regarding what ammo you can and cannot use out of a Springfield Armory M1A. Of course in the end, it’s your gun so you can do what you want with it. Just remember that it’s your choice as to what you do (you’re the one that put the cartridge in the chamber and pressed the trigger), so you are responsible for whatever happens good or bad.

Happy shooting.